


Eternal Sunset

by Sunshinehina



Series: Tsukihina Short Stories [2]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Just something i made a while ago, M/M, Suicide, i’ll update my other fics too dont worry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-10
Updated: 2018-05-18
Packaged: 2019-02-13 01:27:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,649
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12972699
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sunshinehina/pseuds/Sunshinehina
Summary: The sun sets, but it rises again everyday. In this story, though, the sun decided to set forever.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello!  
> Sorry for being MIA, this is just something I wrote quite a while ago. There’s gonna be multiple chapters but probably below 5 chapters. 
> 
> It’s an angsty one bc I was angsty when I wrote it but I think I might write an alternate ending for it xD
> 
> Hope you enjoy it!

Today's the day, Hinata decided. He never thought he'd have enough courage to do it, however now, he is quite certain he has. Things have always been hard for him, even though people might not have realised it. He has always hated himself, every single thing about himself. It doesn't help when people point it out for him, how orange his hair is, how short he is and how he has freckles. Even he has an annoying personality, according to some people; Tsukishima included.

Tsukishima. Hinata has been crushing on him ever since he saw the tall blonde. It doesn't make any sense, as the blonde has always been rude to him ever since they met. But feelings can't be controlled; hearts are wild creatures, that's why our ribs are cages. If it's up to him, Hinata would have chosen someone kind to have a crush on. Someone like Sugawara, probably. Too bad he couldn't choose.

He knows that sometimes Tsukishima is just joking, that he's just saying things to rile him up. But just because it's a joke, doesn't mean it doesn't hurt. Especially coming for a person you like. _Like_. Hinata _likes_ Tsukishima.

It's not just him. Hinata takes everything people said about him seriously, and negatively. Even though a lot of the time people didn't say it to hurt him, they were just stating a fact, and not in a negative way. But for someone who hates everything about himself, those words become a fuel. A fuel to his self-hatred. It's not rational, Hinata knows that he's not rational at all, but his heart aches whenever people say things about him, even though he knows they love him. But he also knows that they were saying the truth, and he hates every truth about himself.

Because today's the day, he woke up earlier than he usually does. He went to the bathroom to take a quick shower and got ready for morning practice. He went to his sister's room.

Natsu. How he loves his little sister. He kissed her forehead gently, careful not to wake her up. He then went to his parents room, just to look at their sleeping faces. They look peaceful, happy. Hinata gave them a last look, trying to carve what he was seeing into his memory. He then went to get his things and rode his bike to the school.

There was nobody in the gym. He's earlier than he usually is anyways, so that doesn't surprise him. Hinata sighed. He really loves volleyball. He mentally cursed himself. Why can't he just love something easier? Something that doesn't require height, something that wouldn't be a fuel to his self-hatred. It's interesting how he loves the things that hurt him most. Volleyball. Tsukishima. He really is an idiot.

He went around the gym, appreciating every part of it. This is the place where he finally had a real team. He appreciates it, and he loves every single one of his teammates. Hinata had always been a generous person, he loves easily, which is why he gets hurt easily too. He then went to the locker room, appreciating everything, saying goodbye.

Today would be his last everything.

He went back to the gym and sat in front of the door. He didn't realise how much time has passed, but suddenly Kageyama was in front of him. He looked up to his partner and grinned,"I win today." He said.

"You cheated." Kageyama growled.

"I did not." Hinata sticked his tongue.

"Did too."

"What's this? The king and his queen are bickering so early in the morning?" Suddenly, Tsukishima and Yamaguchi were there. Tsukishima smirking, Yamaguchi snickering.

Kageyama gave Tsukishima a glare, but went inside the gym to start warming up. Hinata stared at Tsukishima, not saying anything.

"What is it, shortie?" Tsukishima raised his eyebrows.

"Nothing." Hinata gave him a sad smile, and followed Kageyama's lead.

Tsukishima clearly didn't expect that kind of reaction, so that confused him. Yamaguchi stared at him, questioning silently. He just shrugged and went inside the gym to warm up.

A couple minutes later, their senpais came. Nishinoya and Tanaka were as noisy as usual. Soon enough, Hinata joined them, back to his noisy self. Tsukishima sighed in relief, the unusual behaviour of Hinata clearly caught him off guard, but he was glad he's back to his usual self.

After morning practice, it was time for classes. Hinata wasn't in the same class with any of his teammates. He loves his classmates too. They were all nice, and he got along with all of them. He's not really fond of his teachers, because he never liked studying, but it doesn't mean he hates them. The day passed in a blur, before he realised it was time for practice.

"The time seems to be flowing faster than usual today." Hinata pondered. Just when he was craving for just one extra second. Even just one more second, he wants this day to be longer. Because now that everything's gonna end, he started missing things already. The class was soon empty, everyone rushing to go home or to go to their clubrooms. Hinata teared a paper, and wrote a simple sentence. He folded the paper and shoved it to his pocket. Then, he went to the gym.

"Hinata, idiot! You took your time!" Kageyama scolded him.

Hinata smiled. "Sorry, Bakageyama."

The practice went in a blur too. Hinata appreciated every second of it. Everything is his last. Last spike, last receive, last block, last toss.

"Your receives have been improving, Hinata." Sugawara ruffled his hair.

"Thank you, Sugawara-san!" Hinata grinned. And then, the grin turned into a small smile. "Thank you for everything, Suga-san."

Sugawara raised his eyebrows at the sudden change of attitude, but he smiled warmly. "Of course, Hinata. It's nothing."

"Good job today, everyone." Ukai said when they finished their practice. "Now clean up and go home. We'll continue tomorrow."

"Shouyou!" Nishinoya approached him. Hinata turned to face his senpai.

"What is it, Noya-san?"

"Me and Ryuu are going to watch The Incredibles and Monster Inc. in my house today!" Nishinoya exclaimed, naming Hinata's, Tanaka's and His favourite movies. "Are you coming?"

Hinata's face light up for a second, and then his face fell. "Oh, I can't today, Noya-san."

Hinata looked sad. Nishinoya didn't understand why he looked that sad. "That's fine. We can just reschedule, me and Ryuu are free next Friday, too."

Tanaka, who was approaching them called out to them. "So you in, Hinata?" He threw his arm on to Hinata's shoulder.

"He can't today, Ryuu. Let's just reschedule it to next friday."

"No!" His noisy senpais turned to him, confused at the random ourburst. Hinata didn't realise that some of his other teammates were starting to stare, too. "You shouldn't reschedule it. I mean, you should just watch it now. It's fine." Hinata forced a smile.

Tanaka frowned. "Why?"

"I..." Hinata felt his eyes stinging. But he blinked the tears away. "I can't next Friday, too. Sorry, Senpai."

"It's okay! Then we can just reschedule it again!" Nishinoya grinned, trying to cheer his Kouhai up. "When are you free?"

"I don't really... have any free time lately, Noya-san. Sorry." Hinata took a deep breath. "So that's why you should not reschedule!" He added. "I won't be able to go anyway. But it's fine, really." Hinata forced another smile, silently begging them to just let it go.

Finally, Nishinoya and Tanaka was dragged to the locker room by Ennoshita. They were interupting the first years when they were supposed to clean up, after all. It was the first years' turn today.

The first year proceed to clean and tidy up the gym while their seniors went ahead to the locker room to change. Kageyama and Hinata were trying to compete as usual, while Yachi, Yamaguchi and Tsukishima were just doing their responsibility quietly. When they finished, they all went to the locker room to get changed.

They locked the doors after they finished. Hinata stopped and turned to Tsukishima.

"Hey Stingyshima." He called, causing Yamaguchi, Yachi and Kageyama to turn to him too. "Can I talk?" He asked, eyes darting to his other fellow first years. "Privately."

Yamaguchi and Yachi were quick, they dragged Kageyama away before the dark-haired setter managed to utter a word, shouting goodbyes from afar.

Tsukishima raised his eyebrows as he eyed his short teammate curiously.

"What is it?" He asked finally when Hinata didn't utter a single word.

"Can you do me a favor?" He asked quietly. Seeing Hinata being out-of-character, Tsukishima couldn't bring himself to say anything rude or teasing.

"What favor?"

Hinata reached into his pocket and fished out a folded piece of paper. He handed it to Tsukishima, not saying anything. Tsukishima accepted it, he was curious so he went to unfold it. But Hinata was faster.

"Don't open it." He choked. "Yet." Tsukishima eyed him questioningly, but he didn't continue unfolding it. "You have to promise me."

"Promise you what?"

"Promise that you won't open it unless we win the nationals."

Tsukishima raised his eyebrows skeptically. "Shrimp, if I wait until that happens--"

"Promise me." Hinata was staring right into his eyes, face serious. It's something Tsukishima doesn't see, unless they were in a match.

"I promise." He finally managed to answer.

Hinata visibly relaxed. "Thank you." He smiled. Tsukishima thought he saw Hinata's eyes glisten but maybe it was just his imagination.

"Thank you, Tsukishima." Hinata repeated. "Bye."

Hinata took his bike and went ahead.

That was the last time Tsukishima had seen Hinata. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Sorry for the slow updates. I actually have finished this fic but.. I keep hesitating to update because I feel like it's not good enough haha OTL  
> Today I decided to just not care and post the second chapter which is pretty short (i know, sorry)  
> I'm still trying to fix the other chapters though, I'll probably post them when I'm finally satisfied with them ;-;  
> So yeah! Hope you enjoy this. Comments are always appreciated <3

It was already dark. Hinata biked and biked until he spotted a tall, abandoned building, which was located on the edge of the woods, far from prying eyes. He had noticed the building when he got lost trying to look for a bookstore. It was located on the opposite direction from his house, and it was pretty far from his school. He took a deep breath and looked up to the sky. It was dark. There was no star and he could barely see the moon. 

 

It reminded him of Tsukishima. Perhaps, he shouldn't have given him the paper; Tsukishima might not keep his promise. Maybe, he even read what's inside the paper the moment Hinata turned his back. Hinata shook his head and decided that he shouldn't think about it; in a few moments it wouldn't matter anyway. 

 

He didn’t even know why he decided to give that paper to Tsukishima. One moment he wasn’t thinking of anything, next moment he had the urge to do that. It was something he always wanted to do, he guessed. He wanted to get along with Tsukishima, God knows he tried. However it seemed like they weren’t meant to be together because Hinata knows that Tsukishima dislikes him and Kageyama. He couldn’t understand why, but he did. Of course Hinata decided that confessing to Tsukishima would be the most stupid thing he could’ve done when he was alive, the boy didn’t even like him as a friend. Perhaps that’s why he did it, he had lived in a facade, a live full of fake smiles and hidden emotions; so the last thing he wanted to do was to be truthful to himself. And to his first (and last) ever crush. But he did realise that he was being a coward. Even when there was nothing to be afraid of, he was being a coward. But then, he felt like it was normal; Hinata didn’t even know if Tsukishima likes boys, and even if he does, Hinata could guarantee that he himself wouldn’t be included in Tsukishima’s List of Crush.

 

He scoffed when he remembered what Tsukishima said about Hinata and himself, how Hinata was the sun and Tsukishima was the moon. It's too ridiculous Hinata wanted to laugh. Him? The sun? Tsukishima must've been joking. If anything, Tsukishima is the sun and Hinata is—no. Tsukishima is probably not a sun, he's not that bright and warm. But still, he's must be something that can emit light by itself. Hinata, on the other hand, must be something small and insignificant. A fly, maybe. Hinata chuckled at the thought, that certainly fits him better.

 

He reached out for his phone, which was in his backpack. He looked through some messages from his mom, telling him not to come home too late. Some others were from Kenma, Izumi and Kouji. There were some from his classmates too. Hinata realized that it's probably unfair that only Tsukishima gets something, so he decided that he'd send his family, teammates and some of his friends a text message. 

 

What should he say, though? Sorry wouldn’t cut it, because he wasn't sorry. In a few moment, he'll finally get the peace he was longing for, for god's sake. Of course he wasn't sorry. For someone who hated everything about himself, who hated his very existance, the only way to happiness was to _not_ exist. Good bye wasn’t right too; it felt too sad. He was sure that he's gonna meet them in the end, too. 

 

"I love you guys so much, please don't cry or be sad for me because i'm alright now." Was the message he typed for his parents and Natsu. 

 

"Thank you for being my first team ever, and for being my friends. I'm glad I went to Karasuno. Love you!" Was what he typed for his teammates, Yachi and Shimizu-senpai included and Tsukishima excluded because Hinata had given him his message earlier. 

 

"Thank you for being my friend. Love you to the moon and back!" Was what he typed for Kenma, Izumi and Kouji. 

 

Hinata decided that he's going to exclude Kageyama from the message he typed for his teammates and wrote a personal one. 

 

"I'll see you on the finish line, Bakageyama. Don't be grumpy too much and stop frowning. I guess you can say this is me surrendering, so you win. Race you again when we meet. " He typed, chuckling to himself. Even if they fought a lot, Kageyama is his partner, his bestfriend. He loved that guy. 

 

Realizing that it'd be too obvious if he sent the message now, he scheduled them so that they will be sent to the recipients tomorrow night. He then put his phone into silent mode and tossed it into a bush, along with his backpack. Giving his bike a last look, he walked towards the building. 

 

It was really dark and he didn't have his phone with him, so he couldn't use its flaslights. Hinata walked slowly; he hummed as he took the stairs to the top floor. There were around 10 floors. He's not too sure, he wasn't really counting but he's sure that it's tall enough he'd die on impact. He gave the sky and the city lights one last look before closing his eyes. 

 

He recalled a song, an english song, the only english song he listened to. He remembered thinking that it sounded like a happy, easy going song, but it wasn't. He was curious about the meaning, so he searched it. What he found surprised him, it was actually a sad song. He liked how the song sounds, so he kept playing it. He had been playing it often lately. He couldn't remember all of the meaning, but he remembered the meaning of the first part. 

 

_In a little while from now_

_If I'm not feeling any less sour_

_I promise myself to treat myself_

_And visit a nearby tower_

 

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. 

 

_And climbing to the top_

_Will throw myself off_

_In an effort to make it to who_

_Ever what it's like when you're shattered_

 

Then, he jumped. 


	3. Chapter 3

Kageyama frowned. He had been waiting for more than five minutes in their usual meeting place, ready to race to the gym, but Hinata still haven't shown up. Glaring at nothing in particular, Kageyama started walking, he decided that because the dumbass was nowhere to be seen, he's the winner today.

There was nobody yet and the gym was still locked. Yamaguchi had brought the key home with him yesterday because the senpais had to go home early and they were the ones who left the latest because they had to clean up. Kageyama started warming up. He couldn't help but wonder where Hinata is. It was quite lonely without his constant annoying chatter, but Kageyama wasn't going to admit that.  

"Good morning, Kageyama." He heard someone said. He turned to find a smiling Yamaguchi and a bored Tsukishima. 

"Morning." He replied. 

 Yamaguchi went to unlock the door, and they went inside to start warming up. Kageyama hadn't been warming up for that long, so he joined Yamaguchi and Tsukishima. 

"Where's Hinata?" Yamaguchi raised his eyebrows. It was rare seeing Kageyama without Hinata and vice versa, especially in the gym. 

"Don't know. He probably woke up late or something." Kageyama frowned even more. Tsukishima scoffed and Yamaguchi just shook his head slightly while smiling. 

Their senpais started arriving a few minutes later. 20 minutes later, everyone was there except a certain redhead. 

"Has anyone seen Hinata?" Sugawara asked, looking around. 

"We haven't seen him since this morning." Yamaguchi answered. "Kageyama said he probably woke up late."

"Oh, alright." Sugawara said. It was rare for Hinata to wake up late, usually he and Kageyama would arrive before anyone else; both of them were never late when it comes to practice. 

They started doing their morning drills, but Hinata still hadn't showed up. 

"Hinata must’ve woken up pretty late." Nishinoya said to nobody in particular. Tanaka nodded in agreement. Hinata lived quite faraway after all.  

"Good morning!" Everyone's head turned to their teacher who was jogging, approaching them. "Has anyone seen Hinata?" Takeda asked. He tried not to show it but they can clearly see that he looked worried. 

"No, he's not here yet, sensei." Daichi answered. 

"Is that so? Alright then." Takeda frowned. "Who's the last person who have seen him? Kageyama? Did you walk with him yesterday?" 

"No." Kageyama said. "He wanted to talk to Tsukishima so we all went first." He added. 

Yamaguchi nodded. "Yeah, Kageyama, Yachi and I went back first."

All heads turned to Tsukishima, who was raising his eyebrows. "It was nothing. We just talked for a little bit and then he went away." He explained. 

"Is there anything wrong, sensei?" Sugawara asked. 

"Hinata hasn't came home since last night." Takeda finally said, clearly worried. "His mother just called me, she said she had been trying to contact him since she woke up and he still hasn't answered. Because he lives far away, he'd arrive quite late sometimes and they were used to it, so nobody had waited for him. She said she just realised that he wasn't there when she went to wake him up this morning."

Everyone's expression was starting to change. Where would Hinata be? Was he lost? Did something happen? 

Takeda turned to Tsukishima. "Did he seem okay when he talked to you, Tsukishima?" 

"Yeah, he seemed fine." Tsukishima said. "He was a bit quiet, though." He mumbled. 

"But when you were parting ways, he was heading towards his house, right?"

Tsukishima stayed quiet. He mentally cursed himself. How could he not notice that earlier?

"Uh, no. He went the opposite way." He blurted out.

"Okay. Maybe he wanted to go somewhere before going home and got lost. Either way, I'm going to try to search for Hinata now. His mother is searching around for him too." Takeda said. "It's probably nothing to worry about." He tried to give them a reassuring smile, but it looked like a nervous smile instead. "I'll let you know when I find him."

With that, Takeda turned and jogged out. Sugawara turned to Daichi and gave him a look. He felt like something's going on, and he doesn't like it. 

 

* * *

 

Tsukishima couldn't concentrate at all that day. He couldn't stop thinking about Hinata; where he went, what happened to him, where he is now. 

What's written on that paper. 

Tsukishima had left the paper in his home, hiding it carefully inside a CD case he owned just in case his mom decided to clean his room. 

He repeated the conversation he had with the short idiot. Hinata had looked nervous when he gave him the paper. And he looked... sad, when he was thanking Tsukishima. Tsukishima couldn't understand. 

When he arrived to his home, he had stared at the folded piece of paper. He was really tempted to open and read whatever it is that was written on it, but he couldn't shake how Hinata looked at him and asked him to promise not to open it yet. In the end, Tsukishima couldn't bring himself to open it, so he clicked his tongue and hid it away. 

He kinda wished he read it. What if it was something important? But it was too late, Tsukishima would have to wait until school ended so he could go home and grab the paper. He even considered skipping practice because he felt really uneasy about the fact that Hinata was nowhere to be found.

Yamaguchi ended up dragging him to practice, though, convincing him that Takeda-sensei must have found Hinata and he’d announce it to them once everyone gathered.

When Tsukishima and Yamaguchi arrived at the gym, everyone was there already, but no one was saying anything. They were standing around, some of them were sitting on the benches. Everyone looked worried. Takeda-sensei and Ukai-san were not there yet. Tsukishima was about to head out to his house so that he could get the paper Hinata gave to him and read whatever was written in there because the curiosity was killing him. He was pretty worried about the idiot, too.

However before Tsukishima moved, Takeda went inside the gym and everyone immediately surrounded him. 

“Sensei, did you find Hi—“ Sugawara wasn’t able to finish because they heard someone screamed and punched the outer wall of their gym. It sounded like Ukai-san. Tsukishima was sure it was Ukai-san.

Everyone turned to Takeda. Tsukishima realised how pale his teacher looked. He also noticed how his hands were shaking.

“Sensei?” Daichi prompted, face seemed a hundred times worrier. 

“Hinata’s fine, right?” Nishinoya asked, trying to be calm, but no one missed how his voice trembled a little. Takeda hadn’t said anything, but you don’t need to be smart to figure that something bad has happened, with the screaming and punching from Ukai, and the pale, shaking Takeda. 

“Hinata has committed suicide.” Takeda whispered.

No one said anything, no one moved. It was as if nobody understood what Takeda said, everyone's brain was desperately trying to process the words. Tsukishima felt his heart beating faster and faster as it get heavier.

Suddenly, he didn’t want to read whatever was written on the paper.

And then, chaos erupted.

 


	4. Chapter 4

This must have been a joke. After Takeda gave them the news, Nishinoya and Tanaka threw a tantrum. Kageyama ran somewhere, Ennoshita ran after him with Narita. Asahi started tearing up, he kept mumbling something that sounded like _this isn’t real_ over and over again. Sugawara, too, started tearing up. He didn’t even try to blink the tears away, he just stood there and let it flowed down his cheeks. Yamaguchi looked like he was going to pass out, and Kinoshita just stared at the ground. Yachi was already sobbing, Kiyoko was hugging her, trying to soothe her, but Tsukishima didn’t miss the tears that flowed down her cheeks, too. Daichi jus stood there, unmoving, face blank. No one went to calm Nishinoya and Tanaka, No one, went to comfort Sugawara, Asahi or Yamaguchi.

 

Tsukishima felt like it was harder to breathe. He had been the last person who saw him. Who saw Hinata before he went missing. And now suddenly, they said he killed himself.

 

No, that’s impossible. Someone like Hinata would never do something like that. Hinata was the kind of person who always tried his best, who looked allergic to giving up and stop trying. He never know when to stop, he knock everyone and everything down and reach his goals. Someone like that will never do something like suicide.

 

It was impossible.

 

Their gym suddenly felt too small and packed to Tsukishima, so he rushed outside. No one went after him, not even Yamaguchi, thank God. Tsukishima went to get his bags in the locker and sprinted to his house. Which was a pretty stupid thing to do, he didn’t have Hinata’s limitless stamina; his house weren’t too far, but it wasn’t that close to the school, either.

 

Tsukishima arrived at his house, panting heavily. He ran to his bedroom without saying anything to his mother.

 

He went and took the CD case.

 

And then he just stood there, holding the CD case, staring at it.

 

 _Fuck it._ Tsukishima thought. _I’m going to read it._ He opened the CD case and took the folded piece of paper out. There must’ve been a mistake. Perhaps, it was not Hinata that they found. Perhaps, this is just a prank, and when Tsukishima unfolded the paper, there would be a _got you!_ written on the paper. Perhaps then, Hinata will jump out of nowhere and Tsukishima can teach the Shrimp a lesson or two about how not to mess out with people.

 

But then Hinata’s face flashed into his mind.

  
_You have to promise me._

 

Tsukishima’s breath hitched.

 

_Promise that you won’t open it unless we win the nationals._

_Thank you, Tsukishima._

 

And before he realised, tears were streaming down his face.

 

“Why me?” Tsukishima thought as he desperately trying to stop the tears. “Why do I have to wait until we win the nationals?”

 

_“Why did you do it?”_

 

* * *

  

Kageyama was sitting on his bed in is bedroom.

 

“Dumbass.” He muttered. “dumbass, dumbass, dumbass, dumbass.” He repeated it as if it was a mantra, wishing that if he repeated it enough, it would pissed Hinata off and he’d come and say something back to Kageyama.

 

Kageyama repeated it over and over again, but nothing happened.

 

Until his cellphone rang, indicating that there was a new text message.

 

Honestly, Kageyama couldn’t care less about the text message. He didn’t feel like reading any text, he didn’t feel like reading _anything_. He felt like he wanted to burn and destroy the world because he felt so, _so_ angry and his heart hurt like hell.

 

But he felt the urge to read whatever message that was sent to his cellphone. It was as if the universe was telling him how important the message was.

 

So Kageyama dragged himself up and went to get his phone on his desk.

 

His heart skipped a beat when he saw who the sender was. Kageyama felt his throat tighten, and his hand started shaking he wanted to open the message, but at the same time he felt afraid.

After standing still like a complete idiot for a full minute, Kageyama forced himself to open the text.

 

_I'll see you on the finish line, Bakageyama. Don't be grumpy too much and stop frowning. I guess you can say this is me surrendering, so you win. Race you again when we meet._

 

Kageyama’s vision blurred as his tears started pouring out.

 

It’s real. _It’s real._ Hinata really did it.

 

He was gone.

 

Kageyama couldn’t stop his tears. He wasn’t the type of person who cries often, so he guessed he had a lot of tears to spare.

 

“Dumbass.” He sobbed. _“Dumbass.”_

* * *

 

The gym was eerily quiet. It was the first practice after Hinata’s funeral. The first practice after he did it. Ukai-san let them take a week off, so there wasn’t any practice. Before practice began, Daichi asked everyone to gather around.

 

“I know that practice is the last thing everyone wants to do,” he began. “But the tournament is approaching, and we all know if there is anything Hinata wants very much, it’s winning the tournaments. So I think we should all do our best and win, for his sake and ours.” Daichi said. “In the text message Hinata sent to all of us, he thanked us for being his team. We’re a team, but we’re more than that, we’re also a family. And even though Hinata isn’t... here anymore, he is and will always be a part of our team, a part of our family.”

 

Tsukishima could see how most of his friends were starting to tear up, but something bothered him. “What text message?” he asked quietly.

 

Daichi turned to him. “The text message. The ones he sent the day he... I think he must’ve written it beforehand and scheduled the message.”

 

“Tsukki, you didn’t get one?” Yamaguchi asked, and suddenly everyone was turning to him. Tsukishima felt his throat tighten.

 

“No.” He croaked. Everyone fell silent. Hinata had sent the message to everyone, so why didn’t Tsukishima receive anything?

 

“But he gave me something else.” Tsukishima said, voice not more than a whisper. But everyone was silent, so everyone could hear it. They all waited for him to continue. “It’s when... he asked to talk to me, when Yamaguchi, Kageyama and Yachi-san went home first.” He explained.

 

“What did...?”

 

“He gave me a piece of paper.” Tsukishima breathed. “But... he made me promise not to open it before...”

 

“before?”

 

“before what, Tsukishima?” Daichi was frowning now.

 

“Before we win the nationals.” Tsukisima said. “He made me promise only to open it after we win the nationals.”


	5. Chapter 5

They won match after match, going slowly towards their goal. They did it, they went to the Nationals, and now they were in their final stage, they were in the finals. They just have to win this match, and they will win the nationals.

 

Ever since that day, after hearing what Hinata made Tsukishima promise, everyone took it to themselves to work harder; harder than before. Tsukishima was glad no one told him to just open it despite what Hinata requested, even Tanaka and NIshinoya didn’t. Volleyball wasn’t just their passion or their favourite sport then. It became something much, much more important than that, because they looked at it as if it was a final hidden message from Hinata to all of them.

 

That he wanted them to win the nationals.

 

So each boy in the Karasuno team worked hard, they practice eagerly, taking critics from their coach seriously and always trying to improve themselves.

 

And it paid off.

 

It was the last set, and Karasuno only needed one more point to win the match.

 

To win nationals.

 

Tsukishima looked at his opponent carefully, analyzing their movements, trying to figure what they were going to do after this.

 

If there was anyone who wanted to win the nationals the most, it was Tsukishima. If someone told him this before, he would have laughed at them because he didn’t care about nationals. It was just a club activity.

 

But now, he cares about nothing but the nationals.

 

Countless times, Tsukishima found himself holding the folded paper Hinata handed to him, almost opening it. But in the end, he always put it back away. He couldn’t bring himself to do it. He promised the short middle blocker; the least he could do for his dead teammate was to fulfill his promise.

 

If curiosity could kill, Tsukisima must’ve died a thousand times.

 

Their opponent received the ball perfectly. The setter quickly set to the huge wing spiker—their Ace—and the huge man jumped to slam the ball to their side of the court.

 

Fortunately, Tsukishima was fast. He was in front of him in no time, arms stretched, and the ball slammed into his hand.

 

And bounced into their opponent’s side of the court before anyone could react.

 

* * *

 

Anyone who was watching their match must’ve been thinking the same thing. Karasuno was such a strange team.

 

When they won, none of the boys went crazy. None of them yelled our shouted, none of them cried or laughed or smiled. Everyone just stood there in silence.

 

It was as if a heavy burden had been lifted from their shoulder.

 

They won the nationals. For themselves, and for Hinata. And, for Tsukishima.

 

The boys bowed and shook their enemy’s hand, and then they went to their bench silently after thanking their supporters. Tsukishima didn’t even wait. He sat on the bench and reached into his pocket, he had been carrying the paper—now a little bit scruffy—in his pocket all day today. He hesitated for a second, afraid of what might be written inside. He then took a deep breathe, and unfolded the paper.

 

The writing was messy, it was very Hinata-like.

 

_I really, really like you, Tsukishima. Sorry for not being brave enough to say it directly, I know how you’re going to react, anyways, and I’d rather not embarrass myself like that. (- A - ; )_

_Don’t hate me more because of this, please._

_And I really, really think that you’re amazing, Tsukishima. Thanks for everything._

 

Tsukishima felt his vision blur as his tears fell. He didn’t have the energy to try not to cry, even though he felt his teammates eyes on him. Everyone had been looking at him since he pulled the paper from his pocket. Judging from the gasps he heard, Tsukishima figured that nobody expected him to cry right then and there.

 

“Tsukki...“ he heard Yamaguchi said his name before he felt his hand on his shoulder.

 

Tsukishima didn’t try to stop crying. He was grieving, even after all this time, but at that moment, there was something more.

 

It was regret.

 

For Tsukishima had been crushing on Hinata from the moment his eyes landed on the short middle blocker. His enthusiasm, innocence and pure determination had pulled Tsukishima to him out of his will.

 

And the moon had been yearning for the sun all along.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! The ending is finally here, haha. I'm sorry it's pretty short; I hope I didn't dissapoint you with the ending. ;w; Let me know what you think about it!!
> 
> Also, this fic has officially ended, but I might add some extra chapters if I've got the time, like the story from another perspective, or even an AU where Hinata didn't jump.... we'll see! xD
> 
> Finally, thank you to everyone who read, commented, and leave kudos in this story. I hope you can check out my other works too :D


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